It’s a Done Dean! Community Fans Rejoice for a Harmon-ious Return

Last year, fans of Community were heartbroken to hear that showrunner Dan Harmon was fired. NBC realized that they “Britta’d” things up, so they “Chang’d” their minds. Deadline confirmed yesterday that Dan Harmon and co- executive producer Chris McKenna are returning for Community’s fifth season. There are also reports that Dino Stamatopoulos is returning as a writer, but let’s hope that he also comes back as “Starburns.” The show’s renewal comes after a very shaky and lackluster fourth season. Last year, it was placed in the Friday night “death slot”, and then the premiere was pushed back to mid-season.

The fourth season was not terrible. Some of the hatred towards the fourth season could have been spawned by fans being upset than Harmon was fired. Honestly, it could have been worse, it could have been the American version of Inspector Spacetime. It could have turned into a multi-cam sitcom with a laugh track, which nearly gave fans a heart attack when it was shown in the opening of the fourth season. It seems like a lot of fans just say that the show was bad and do not know why they feel this way. What made Community great was its subtlety. Seasons one through three had jokes that were based on wordplay. Season four’s jokes were simpler, more in-your-face and did not need a second viewing in order to understand them. Previous episodes had pop culture homages that seemed to virtually disappear in the fourth season. The first few episodes of the fourth season were not amazing, but toward the end of the season, it started to feel like Community again.

Now that Harmon, McKenna and Stamatopoulos are back, fans are once again looking forward to 13 brand new episodes, which are rumored to be the final season. If fans can campaign to revive Community after season four, they certainly can after season five. Fans are already hoping for a sixth season with the possibility of a movie as well.